The Nutcracker Festival of the Budapest Opera House launches at the end of November or early December. There is a 30 meter majestic Christmas tree set up in front of the Hungarian State Opera House as well as a small wooden booth selling hot drinks in the afternoon. The Nutcracker Festival of the Budapest Opera will last until the end of December.

Nutcracker Festival Budapest Opera

Concerts by Budapest Opera

There are several open air concerts scheduled for the festival, which are free. In addition to the official chorus of the Budapest Opera, including its children’s choir, further 17 choirs (like the School Choir of St. Stephen’s High School, or the School Choir of the Bela Bartok Secondary School) lined up to perform Christmas concerts in front of the Budapest Opera House (until December 23).

Christmas at Budapest Opera – Pal Csillag Photography

The choirs will sing in front of the theater, to the right of the word Sphinx statue.

The date of the official opening ceremony of the Budapest Nutcracker Festival changes from year to year. Please check on the site of the Opera House the exact date this year.

Hot Drink Booth by the Opera

In the elegant and stage prop like Christmas Booth of the Budapest Nutcracker Festival you can buy mulled wines, or hot tea. This is a charity booth. Besides the hot drinks, you can buy little gifts from Russia and France, the two outstanding countries of ballet. All the proceedings of the charity booth will be given to the Ecumenical Organization (Ökumenikus Segélyszervezet) to help families and children living in poverty and need.

The Nutcracker ballet has been performed in the Budapest Opera House for over 60 years now with great success, and international acclaim.

7 Nutcracker Installations by the Budapest Opera

Budapest Nutcracker Festival Installations – source: Metropol.hu

On Karoly korut (Karoly ring road) and by the Opera House you can see special installations. Old style cylindrical news posts turned into artsy displays: the decade old props and figures of the Nutcracker shows of past years have been included in the transparent posts to call attention to the Nutcracker Festival, like the Mouse King, the Nutcracker, the Ballerina, Drosselmayer, etc.

On some evenings of December , at the open air Christmas concert (dubbed the Kiskaracsony or Little Christmas concert) more than 1,600 people with disabilities have been invited to participate in the Budapest Christmas festivities and the Nutcracker Festival of the Hungarian State Opera House.

The concerts of the Nutcracker Festival are around 6 pm, and from 5 to 6pm, you can buy your hot drinks from some of the singers, artists and ballet dancers of the Opera House.

If you see crazily dressed people on the streets of Budapest in freezing December weather, sort of beach Santa Claus guys and girls running along, please be aware that Hungarians did not go nuts, just participate in a special charity event: the Santa Claus Charity Jogging in Budapest on December 11 in 2016.

Santa Claus Jogging Budapest

Do join them if you are a regular runner and can bear the cold weather for a bit of love. The charity jogging is for sick children, any donations, registrations will go into helping children in need through the Magic Lamp Fund (Csodalampa Alapitvany).

After the jogging, the participants head to the Szechenyi Baths to enjoy the warm thermal waters and the sauna.

One of the most widespread and long running charity events in Budapest is called the Budapest Santa Claus Factory (in Hungarian: Mikulasgyar, where Mikulas comes from the word Nikolaus).

Budapest Christmas Charity on Vorosmarty Sq: Mikulasgyar

There are many people who visit the gift spots of the Santa Claus Factory to donate gifts for poor children in Hungary and in Hungarian communities outside the border of Hungary. Besides giving gifts, you can also enjoy some nice concerts and Christmas shows.

In Budapest you can also find several factories set up. Please donate, or join the enthusiastic volunteers of the Mikulasgyar communities (many of them comes from abroad to help). It is also fun to visit the factories with your children who will like sending gifts. :)

How to donate: you can buy pre-packed Christmas gifts for children who live in poverty. The Christmas goodies include: sweets, mug, puzzle, pencil. You can also donate your unwanted items suitable for children (no need to wrap them up).

Santa Claus Factories in Budapest

56 Square behind the Art Hall aka Kunsthalle on Heroes Square (Mucsarnok), by the City Park of Budapest: there is a heated tent set up for the charity Christmas gifts. The name of the square in Hungarian is 56-osok tere.